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Occupational and Environmental Medicine Residency Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
http:// www.hsph.harvard.edu/oemr/
From OEMR Program Director and Associate Professor: Stefanos N. Kales, MD, MPH, FACP, FACOEM (OEMR 1993)
Editor: Tiffany Kehayoglou Sarkissian Table of Contents:
Director’s Note 1
2015-2016 Residents
2-4
2016 Graduates 4-6
Alumni Spotlights: Dr. Carolyn Langer / Dr. Rokho Kim
7, 8
Resident Research Awards/ Presentations/APBM Board Exam Successes
9, 10
Resident & Recent Alumni Publications/ “Prajna” fund
11
Alumni Spotlight: Dr. Howard Frumkin
11
Harriet Hardy Award: Dr. Michael Erdil
12
Dr. Elisha Atkins’ Retirement / Dr. Kales Visits Teikyo University
13
Outstanding Teacher Awards
14
Donor Recognition & Donation form NECOEM Posters/ AOHC Reunion Dinner/Dr. Kales Visits Korea Mediterranean Diet and Health Conference
15 16 17
Sponsors:
Medlock Consulting
Cambridge Health Alliance
NECOEM
Occupational Health Connections
OEHN
Welcome to the 2016 Occupation-
al and Environmental Medicine
Residency (OEMR) Annual Re-
port. This is our ninth edition of
the OEMR Synapse and we have
much exciting news to report. If
you are a competitive student,
resident or mid-career physician,
we hope the OEMR Synapse will
inspire you to consider OEM and
the Harvard program. To our
alumni and friends, we hope to
keep you connected and continue
to count on your vital support –
moral, teaching, networking and
financial. As we celebrate our
current residents, 2016 graduates,
distinguished alumni, we also in-
form you of additional further
progress in diversifying our fund-
ing for training. Last fall, we an-
nounced that our program received
$1 million in endowed and
$250,000 in current use funds for
resident scholarships. These funds
have been generously donated by
an anonymous donor. The size of
this gift (“Prajna” fund) was un-
precedented for the residency and
adds to the over $300,000 already
collected in our endowed Nyla
Medlock Fund. The latter fund has
grown steadily with the help of
Nyla and a few other dedicated
supporters. For 2016, Jeff Vogel
(OEMR ’16) was named the inau-
gural Medlock Fellow. In further
recognition of Nyla’s generosity
and leadership, the School has
selected Nyla for a feature inter-
view in Legacy Matters, the offi-
cial newsletter of Harvard Chan’s
1913 Society, which honors per-
sons who make a life income pro-
vision to our School. So, a huge
thanks to all who have contributed.
Continuing this philanthropic work
is crucial to growing the specialty
of occupational medicine. This
year, we interviewed a large num-
ber of extremely competitive ap-
plicants, and we had to turn away
some very deserving candidates
due to insufficient funding. Given
our large census, our financial
needs exceed our NIOSH budget,
which remains under constant
threat. Please reflect on how the
Harvard OEMR has benefitted
your career and consider helping
to make these opportunities pos-
sible for future residents (see
page 15). 2016 was a year with
many other successes. We pro-
duced five graduates and an inter-
national fellow who is now a fac-
ulty member in her home country.
Our graduates continue to excel on
the ABPM OM Board exam (see
page 9). We maintain a strong
census of highly qualified resi-
dents, and we have recruited an-
other stellar class for the summer
of 2017. 2016 also marked note-
worthy highlights from Harvard
OEM alumni and faculty. Carolyn
Langer (OEMR ‘93), Chief Medi-
cal Officer of MassHealth and
Harvard Chan faculty received the
Leadership in Public Health Prac-
tice Award, one of our School’s
highest honors. Jim Tacci (OEMR
’97) served as ACOEM’s Presi-
dent and completes his term at this
year’s meeting in Denver. Howard
Frumkin (MPH ‘82, OEMR ‘88)
finished a six-year term as Dean of
the University of Washington
School of Public Health, and con-
tinues to serve as Professor of
Environmental and Occupational
Health Sciences. Lee Okurowski
(OEMR ‘02) was named the resi-
dency’s Clinical Preceptor of the
Year. Rohko Kim (OEMR ’95)
and I participated as keynote
speakers and delivered several
other lectures during a week of
conferences in Seoul, Korea. We
also celebrated Elisha (Skip)
Atkins (OEMR ‘82) retirement
from occupational medicine after
many decades exceptional service
as the Director of MGH’s Employ-
ee Health Service, a member of
our Residency Advisory Commit-
tee and as an outstanding clinical
preceptor. At NECOEM’s annual
conference, one of our residents’
favorite guest faculty, Michael
Erdil from OEHN and University
of Connecticut received the 2016
distinguished Harriet Hardy
Award. At AOHC in Chicago, Jeff
Vogel received an OPSF Scholar-
ship and Kevin Loh (OEMR ’16)
received ACOEM’s Public Safety
Award. Also at AOHC, Jim Tacci
was elevated to President, and we
enjoyed fellowship at an outstand-
ing reunion dinner and reception.
Please mark your calendars to
join us in Denver, for ACOEM’s
102nd annual meeting, and our
2017 reunion dinner (see page
16). In closing, 2016 marked my
10th year of directing the Harvard
OEMR. It is my honor and privi-
lege to lead this world renowned
program. I look forward to seeing
you whenever the opportunity
presents! On behalf of the whole
program, we extend best wishes for health and success in 2017 to
you and your families. One more
time, we thank our friends and
benefactors for their generous
support.
Best regards, Stefanos
2017, 9th Edition
OEMR SYNAPSE / 2016 ANNUAL REPORT
Page 2
Current Residents: First Year
David Rainey, MD, MEd (OEMR '18) is from Boise, Idaho and
received his MD and M.Ed degrees from the University of Washing-
ton. Prior to medical school, he worked as a research assistant to
an academic dermatologist renowned for her work on contact der-
matitis, where he was first exposed to the field of occupational dis-
ease. David is interested in integrated workplace safety and wellness
programs, and in the One Health approach to interdisciplinary
health sciences education and health promotion. His other interests
include technology entrepreneurship, medical education, and the
built environment. He is happily married and enjoying the adventure
of raising three young children, with whom he enjoys playing music,
tennis, biking, and exploring the great outdoors.
Michael S. Chin, MD (OEMR '18) is a native of Boston and a grad-
uate of the Tufts University School of Medicine. He attended the
University of Virginia with undergraduate majors in Psychology and
East Asian Studies. He was previously a Plastic Surgery resident at
the University of Massachusetts Medical School, where he elected to
perform three years of dedicated research in radiation exposure. His
basic science and clinical investigations in radiation led to an interest
in public health and Occupational Medicine. In his free time, he
serves as the only certified instructor of Systema Russian Martial Art
in Massachusetts, teaching his students the connections between
mind, body, and psyche.
Clifton J. Wilcox, MD (OEMR '18) received his MD from Eastern Virgin-
ia Medical School and his B.A. in Economics from University of Chicago.
He completed his internal medicine internship at Allegheny General
Hospital (Drexel) in Pittsburgh, PA. Cliff has practiced medicine in many
different settings at home and abroad; he has also held commercial pi-
lot's license and flown with United Airlines Express, based out of Dulles
and O'Hare, with approximately 3,000 flying hours. While growing up
in greater Chicago, Cliff's father, a pediatric dentist, was one of his
sources of inspiration to become a physician. He enjoys spending time
with family and is an avid traveler, hiker and physical fitness enthusiast.
See page 17 to learn more about
Mediterranean Diet & Health Conference / October 15-21, 2017 / Halkidiki, Greece
Page 3
Current Residents: Second Year
Neil Jenkins, MD, MPH, PhD (OEMR ‘17) grew up on a farm near the
strip mines of Ohio coal country. He has long been interested in the impact
of the built environment on human health. He received his undergraduate
and doctorate degrees in materials science and engineering at MIT. In gradu-
ate school, he analyzed welding fumes made up of ultrafine particles that can
contain hexavalent chromium, nickel or manganese. His first experience at
HSPH was collecting fume particles for Dr. Joseph Brain's group by welding in
the basement of SPH1. He subsequently received his MD and MPH degrees
at The Ohio State University. He then completed his internship at the Uni-
versity of Vermont. Since graduate school he has worked as a consultant on
cases that include respirable particles, crush injuries, falls, fires and explo-
sions. He finds forensic investigation intellectually challenging and suited to
his multi-disciplinary background. He likes farming, making ice cream, driving
his VW GTI and rock climbing.
Liz Kwo, MD, MBA, MPH (MPH ‘16, OEMR ’17) received her a BA from
Stanford University and completed a Fulbright Scholarship in Taiwan research-
ing the health and wellness of elderly populations, her MD from Harvard Medical School and her MBA from Harvard Business School. Liz completed her
medical internship at CHA/Harvard Medical School. She formerly worked for
Medtronic in Europe and the US, specializing in medical device product devel-
opment, marketing, operations and remote monitoring for the ENT and Diabetes Business Unit. She was the VP of Provider Networks at American
Well, a telemedicine company that offers online physician visits to employers
and insurance companies to improve access to care and health monitoring. She
has experience co-founding and selling her company New Pathway Education
and Technology Group to the private equity firm CVC. She advises several
start-ups and venture capital firms in strategy and growth. Her hope is to help
businesses effectively align incentives to improve employee productivity and
wellness through technology and innovation.
Shane Journeay, PhD, MD, MPH (MPH ’15). After completing his MPH in
2015, Shane returned to the University of Toronto and finished his Physiatry
Training program. He is originally from Nova Scotia, Canada and obtained his
MD from Dalhousie Medical School, where he was able to complete an away
OEM rotation in his final year at HSPH/CHA. Prior to medical school, Shane
received a Bachelor of Science as well as a Master’s degree from the University
of Ottawa, where he investigated the effects exercise and heat stress on cardi-
ovascular physiology. He subsequently completed a PhD in Toxicology with a
focus on nanotechnology at the University of Saskatchewan. He has represent-
ed Canada at the International Space University in Strasbourg, France, where
he received a Diploma in Space Studies. Shane was also chosen by the Canadi-
an Space Agency to complete a month long rotation in aerospace medicine at
the NASA Johnson Space Center. He has over 30 peer reviewed publications
and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Occupational Medicine and
Toxicology.
Page 4
Complementary Pathway
John D. Clarke, MD, FAAFP, (OEMR ’18) is a board certified Family Physician. He
received his BA in sociology and music from Columbia University and is a graduate of
the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in NY. He completed his residency in Family Medi-
cine at St. Vincent’s Catholic Medical Centers in NY where he served as Chief Resi-
dent. John then served as the Medical Director and Medical Review officer for the
Long Island Rail Road in NY. Currently he is the Administrative Medical Director and a
Medical Review Officer for Consolidated Edison Company of New York. In addition,
he practiced general family medicine in Manhattan, Queens, and the Bronx. John has a
passion for writing and producing rap songs and videos and has fused medical infor-
mation rap and created a genre that he calls Health Hop®. Over the years, he has rec-
orded dozens of songs and several public service announcements. With his strong OM
work experience, John has joined the Complementary Pathway, half-time for two
years. He also enjoys opportunities to educate as a public speaker and has presented
on a variety of medical and safety topics at national and international medical confer-
ences, Grand Rounds, community, school, and church events, and has been inter-
viewed on national and international television and radio programs.
Graduates Deborah Barbeau, MD, PhD, MSPH, (OEMR ’16) was Chief Resident for
2015-2016. Originally from Wellesley, MA, she received her MD from Columbia
University College of Physicians and Surgeons and completed Internal Medicine
training at the Columbia Presbyterian. She then completed a combined Infectious
Diseases/Epidemiology Fellowship at Emory University and the CDC in Atlanta,
GA. She is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases. Her re-
search interests including, Travelers’ Health, water quality and sanitation, prompt-
ed her to pursue a Masters of Science in Public Health and subsequently a PhD in
Environmental Health from Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropi-
cal Medicine, focusing on the health effects of recognized and emerging pollutants.
She hopes to pursue clinical and research activities that allow her to combine her
medical and public health interests, with a focus on the interactions between the
environment, infectious diseases, and human health. Upon completing her resi-
dency, Deb was appointed Associate Medical Director for OEHN. She currently
lives in Dedham, MA with her husband, JB, and their two sons, Harry Rex and
William (“Will”).
Kevin Loh, DO, FS, MPH (MPH ’15, OEMR ’16) graduated in 2016 and is a U.S.
Air Force Scholar. Kevin is originally from Taiwan and immigrated to the U.S. dur-
ing high school. After completing his Bachelors of Science in Chemical Engineer-
ing degree at California State Polytechnic University, he worked as a Bioenviron-
mental Engineer in the U.S. Air Force, giving him a strong foundation in industrial
hygiene. He subsequently completed medical school at the Western University of
Health Sciences. After finishing his internship at Keesler Medical Center, Mississip-
pi, he served as a U.S. Air Force Flight Surgeon. His experiences have included:
being the main medical liaison officer between the U.S. Air Force and a Singapore-
an flight squadron stationed at Mountain Home AFB, Idaho; deployment to a Con-
tingency Aeromedical Staging Facility providing care to wounded soldiers return-
ing home; and working as a medical consultant on a B-1 Lancer Crash Accident
Investigation Board. Currently, as the medical director of 353 Battlefield Airmen
in the Training Squadron at Lackland AFB, Texas, Kevin oversees the health/
wellness and human performance optimization program among combat athletes.
Page 5
Graduates Continued... Erin Teeple, MD, MPH (MPH ’14, OEMR ‘16) graduated with honors from
Brown University and received her MD from Brown Medical School. Erin’s in-
terest in Occupational Medicine developed from her desire to more effectively
evaluate and treat musculoskeletal injuries and osteoarthritis, a topic she began
to consider during her Orthopedic Surgery Residency and Sports Medicine Re-
search Fellowship at Brown/Rhode Island Hospital. Erin completed her OEM
training over three years through a joint appointment in the OEMR and on the
NIAMS T32 Grant held by Drs. Jeffrey N. Katz and Elena Losina in the Ortho-
pedic and Arthritis Center for Outcomes Research (OrACORe) at Brigham and
Women’s Hospital. Erin has published in the areas of cartilage mechanics and
osteoarthritis pathophysiology, and she is particularly interested in maximizing
functional outcomes in osteoarthritis treatment. Erin is currently a post-
doctoral fellow at the Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety and lives in
Westborough, MA with her husband, a professor of Classics at the College of
the Holy Cross in Worcester, and their two children.
Samuel D. Turner, MD, MPH (MPH ’15, OEMR ‘16) hails from the
Blue Ridge Mountains of Southwest Virginia. He is a graduate of the
University of Virginia and the Medical College of Virginia. Sam’s resi-
dency research was titled, Self-reported Stress-related Illnesses among US
Law Enforcement Officers: A National Survey, and is in the process of
submission to a peer-reviewed journal. Sam, his wife and their four
children greatly enjoyed exploring the Boston area. Outside of Occupational Medicine, Sam also enjoys running, hiking, skiing, and
rotary-engine sports cars.
Jeffrey E. Vogel, MD, MPH (MPH ’16, OEMR ’16) is originally from Baltimo-
re, Maryland. He attended Lafayette College and obtained a Bachelors of Scien-
ce in Biology. During this time, Jeff spent his summer and winter vacations wor-
king at the Center for Vaccine Development (CVD), conducting research focu-
sed on the stabilization of plasmid-based vaccine delivery utilizing Salmonella
typhi live vectors. Jeff continued his training at the Emory University School of
Medicine, graduating in 2011. Jeff successfully completed a General Surgery In-
ternship at Vanderbilt University. He then completed two years of Plastic and
Reconstructive Surgery at Loma Linda University in Southern California. Based
on Jeff’s keen interest in lifestyle and workplace health promotion, as well as
entrepreneurial endeavors, he decided to change career course and enter OEM
training. Jeff is the co-founder and CEO of RecoverMe, a venture-backed plat-
form focused on improving return-to-work times in injured employees. He is
an instructor of medicine at the Harvard Medical School and an OM physician
at Cambridge Health Alliance.
See page 14 to see the recipients of our
Outstanding Clinical & Academic Teaching Awards!
Page 6
Patthrarawalai Phichalai, MD, MPH (MPH '14, Special OEM Fellow '16) is
from Thailand. Patthrarawalai is an instructor in occupational medicine at
King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, the teaching hospital of
Chulalongkorn University Medical School and one of the largest hospitals
in Thailand. After earning her MD from Chulalongkorn University, she com-
pleted her internship in rural areas of Chanthaburi, one of Thailand's largest
industrial provinces. Observing that access to occupational healthcare among
underprivileged workers is extremely limited and under-regulated, she decid-
ed to pursue the field of occupational medicine to raise the standard of occu-
pational safety. She subsequently served as a staff physician in the Department
of Preventive and Social Medicine, Chulalongkorn University Medical School
and earned a Master of Public Health degree in Occupational and Environmen-
tal Health from Harvard University in 2014 and completed her OEM Fellow-
ship in 2016.
Special International Fellow
We hope to see you at this year’s American College of Occupational
and Environmental Medicine’s AOHC 2017 reunion dinner!
See page 16 for details!
Spotlight: Carolyn S. Langer, MD, JD ’92, MPH ’92, OEMR ’93 In September, 2016,
Carolyn received the
Leadership in Public
Health Practice Award,
given to graduates of
the Harvard T.H. Chan
School of Public Health,
who have been out-
standing examples of
effective leadership in
the practice of public
health, in the public or
private sphere. As chief
medical officer of
MassHealth, Carolyn
provides clinical leader-
ship to the Massachu-
setts state Medicaid program, which serves one out of every
four citizens in the Commonwealth. Under her watch, the
Office of Clinical Affairs has evolved to meet the changing
needs of a program at the forefront of Affordable Care Act
implementation and the development of alternative payment
reform models, with Massachusetts at the leading edge of
health innovation. Dr. Langer has advanced the use of big
data and analytics across the Medicaid program to identify
cost-saving opportunities while improving access to care.
Major contributions include clinical input into the design of
primary care payment reform and accountable care organiza-
tion initiatives, as well as ensuring better access to newer
services, such as hepatitis C treatment, gender reassignment
surgery, and applied behavioral analysis for children with au-
tism, making Massachusetts a pioneer on many fronts. Dr.
Langer previously served as medical director for medical
management and quality at Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, and
is a retired colonel, medical corps officer, and flight surgeon
in the Army National Guard, where she commanded a mo-
bile army surgical hospital unit and directed an aviation medi-
cine program. Despite a demanding professional career, Dr.
Langer has always made time to inspire the next generation
of public health professionals at Harvard Chan, teaching oc-
cupational health policy and administration and lecturing for
the Center for Executive and Continuing Professional Educa-
tion. She is an associate professor at the University of Mas-
sachusetts Medical School and serves in an advisory capacity
to both the Boston University School of Public Health and
the Tufts University School of Medicine, in addition to giving
selflessly of her time to mentor undergraduate and graduate
students and young professionals alike.
In her own words, Carolyn states, It has often been said that
the true moral test of government is how that government treats
those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in
the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows
of life, the sick, the needy and the [disabled]. Whether in my
former practice of clinical occupational medicine preventing and
mitigating worker injury and illness or in my current role as Chief
Medical Officer of the Massachusetts Medicaid program
(MassHealth), I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to
improve health outcomes in some of our most vulnerable popula-
tions. I have also been blessed with very talented and dedicated
team members, including one of my former employees, Umbereen
Nehal, MBBS, MPH ’07, who nominated me for this award. I
would encourage occupational and public health practitioners—
particularly those who are students or at the start of their ca-
reers—to consider spending time in the public sector. It has been
one of the most gratifying experiences in my career, and I am so
proud of the work that we do each day at MassHealth and at the
Executive Office of Health and Human Services
I am very humbled to be the recipient of the Harvard T. Chan
School of Public Health 2016 Leadership in Public Health Practice
Award. I would particularly like to thank Dr. David Christiani and
Dr. Richard Monson who welcomed me into the occupational
medicine residency 27 years ago, even though, as an MD-JD, I did
not quite fit the typical profile. I appreciate their confidence in me
and hope that I have contributed to the school and will continue to
pay it forward to future generations of students. I would also like
to express my appreciation to all my colleagues in the OEM pro-
gram and to all my students, TAs and guest lecturers who have
passed through my course, Occupational Health Policy & Admin-
istration, these past 24 years. I can honestly say that I learn as
much from you as you do from me. It is an honor to be part of
the Department of Environmental Health and the broader HSPH
community.
Photo: Carolyn receiving the Leadership in Public Health Prac-
tice Award in September 2016.
Page 7
Spotlight: Rokho Kim, MD, MPH, DrPH ’95, OEMR ’95, PhD
Dr. Rokho Kim is a physician specializing in Family
Medicine, Occupational and Environmental Medicine
and Climate/Planetary Health. He graduated from
Seoul National University College of Medicine in 1982
and completed residency training in Family Medicine at
the Seoul National University Hospital in 1985. He
completed residency training in Occupational and
Environmental Medicine at HSPH in 1995.
After graduating from Harvard School of Public Health
(Doctor of Public Health, 1995), and serving HSPH as
Instructor in Occupational Medicine, he was appointed
as Assistant Professor at Seoul National University
School of Public Health and Adjunct Assistant Profes-
sor at Harvard School of Public Health from 1998-
2001. He then served as Assistant Director of Occu-
pational Health Surveillance Program of Massachusetts
Department of Public Health from 2001-2003. During
this period, he was nominated as the founding CEO of
Wonjin Green Hospital and director of Wonjin Insti-
tute for Occupational and Environmental Health. From
1985-1991, he founded and managed Sadang Clinic and
provided free or low-cost primary healthcare services
to the uninsured patients in the poor neighbourhood
in Seoul. In 1987, he (and colleagues) founded the Kore-
an Association of Physicians for Humanism, serving as
leader of the association. Dr. Kim’s successful advoca-
cy work as a medical witness and a social activist for
the medical diagnosis and legal recognition of carbon
disulphide poisoning among the former
workers of Wonjin Rayon Company, suffering from
cerebrovascular strokes, was a historical milestone in
the development of occupational health policy in Ko-
rea. Later, he was awarded the Albert Schweitzer Award
by Harvard University at the graduation ceremony in
1995, and "Good Korean Citizen Award" by Moonhwa
Broadcasting Company (MBC) in Korea in 1999 for his
advocacy for workers with occupationally related dis-
eases. In 2003, Dr. Kim joined the World Health Or-
ganization (WHO), as Scientist at the European Cen-
tre for Environment and Health in Bonn, Germany,
where he provided technical and policy support to
European countries in areas of Environmental Health
Indicators, Noise and Health, and Occupational
Health. He coordinated the European Network of
WHO Collaborating Centres in Occupational Health
to implement WHO Global Plan of Action on Work-
ers' Health, and launched "European Network for
Workers' Health" with 32 European institutions. Since
2013, he was promoted to Environmental Health Spe-
cialist of WHO Division of Pacific Technical Support in
Suva, Fiji, serving 22 Pacific island countries and terri-
tories in the areas of Climate Change and Health, Dis-
aster Risk Management for Health as well as Water
and Sanitation. Dr. Kim is the celebrated author of
more than fifty scientific papers published in various
journals. He was the lead author of Occupational
Health and Safety chapter in the textbook, Facets of
Public Health in Europe (2014), and an editorial, Climate
change and health in Pacific island states, of the WHO
Bulletin (December 2015). He has been a fellow of
Collegium Ramazzini since 2013.
To make a gift in support
of our OEMR Program,
please visit:
www.hsph.harvard.edu/
oemr/about-us/make-a-
donation/
Page 8
ABPM Board
Exam Successes We are pleased to report suc-
cessful American Board of Pre-
ventive Medicine exam results for
OEMR 2016 graduates.
Deb Barbeau, Kevin Loh and Sam
Turner all passed the ABPM exam
for certification in Occupational
Medicine. Once again, HSPH
scores on average exceeded the
national means for OM-residency
trained examinees.
Congratulations to Deb,
Sam and
Kevin!
Kevin Loh, DO, FS, MPH
(MPH ’15, OEMR ’16) received
the ACOEM Public Safety Award
for his research entitled,
Entry-level fitness assessment
performance and the probability
of the subsequent academy
graduation in Massachusetts
police recruits.
Jeffrey E. Vogel, MD, MPH
(MPH ’16, OEMR ’16) was named
the inaugural Nyla Medlock
Fellow in OEM. Jeff was also selected as the recipient of the
2016 AOHC OPSF Resident
Scholarship.
Resident Research Awards and Presentations
From left: Ann Backus, MS, Instructor in Occupational Safety, Coordinator,
Occupational and Environmental Medicine Residency, Jeff Vogel (MPH ‘16,
OEMR ‘16), Erin Teeple (MPH ‘14, OEMR ‘16), Kevin Loh (MPH ‘15, OEMR
‘16), Sam Turner (MPH ‘15, OEMR ‘16) , Deb Barbeau (OEMR ‘16) and
Stefanos N. Kales, MD, MPH, FACP, FACOEM (OEMR 1993), OEMR Pro-
gram Director and Associate Professor.
Page 9
Page 10
Resident and Recent Alumni Publications
Kwo E, Christiani D. The role of gene-environment interplay in occupational and environmental diseases: current concepts
and knowledge gaps. Curr Opin Pulm Med. 2017 Mar; 23(2): 173-176. doi: 10.1097/MCP. 0000000000000364.
Waller KA, Chin KE, Jay GD, Zhang LX, Teeple E, McAllister S, Badger GJ, Schmidt, Fleming BC. Intra-articular recombinant
human proteoglycan 4 mitigates cartilage damage after destabilization of the medial meniscus in the Yucatan minipig. Am J
Sports Med. 2017 Jan; 1:363546516686965. doi: 10.1177/0363546516686965. PMID 28129516
MacFarlane LA, Yang H, Collins JE, Guermazi A, Jones MH, Teeple E, Xu L, Losina E, Katz JN. Associations among meniscal
damage, meniscal symptoms and knee pain severity. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage. 2016 Dec 30; pii: S1063-4584(16)30494-0.
doi: 1016/j.joca.2016.12.023.
Dennerlein JT, O’Day ET, Mullow DF, Somerville J, Stoddard AM, Kenwood C, Teeple E, Boden Li, Sorensen G, Hasimoto
D. Arthroscopic irrigation of the bovine stifle joint increases cartilage surface friction and decreases superficial zone lubricin.
Occup Environ Med. 2016 Oct 25; pii: oemed-2015-103507. doi: 10.1136/oemed-2015-103507.
Teeple E, Karamchedu NP, Larson KM, Zhang L, Badger GJ, Fleming BC, Jay GD. Arthroscopic irrigation of the bovine stifle
joint increases cartilage surface friction and decreases superficial zone lubricin. J Biomech. 2016 Sep 6;49(13):3106-3110.
10.1016/j.jbiomech.2016.07.024. PMCID = PMC 5056145.
We are thrilled to announce that our
Occupational and Environmen-
tal Medicine Residency (OEMR)
Program received $1 million, last
summer, in endowed and $250,000
in current use funds for resident tui-
tion and stipend scholarships. These
funds have been generously donated
by an anonymous donor as part of a
$10 million total package of gifts to
the Harvard T.H. Chan School of
Public Health. Other portions of the
gift support financial aid for students
in the School’s Nutrition programs,
and the School’s Doctor of Public
Health (DrPH) Program. The full
press release from our School is
here: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/
news/press-releases/10-million-
anonymous-gift-to-harvards-public-
health-school-supports-scholarships-
doctoral-level-public-health-
leadership-training/ OEMR recipients
of scholarships from this program
will be called Prajna Fellows of Oc-
cupational and Environmental Medi-
cine. The anonymous donor, who
has now made gifts to the School
totaling more than $17 million, says
the purpose of the new gift is to in-
spire the spirit of Prajna, a Sanskrit
word that conveys ultimate wisdom
– wisdom that cannot be reached by
developing intellect alone, but entails
insight from experience and under-
standing through the engagement
with all that surrounds us. As we
celebrate these new gifts, please
consider making a contribution
of your own to further secure our
abilities to provide current and fu-
ture residents with a Harvard educa-
tion in Occupational Medicine. Op-
tions are available to make a gift to
endowed funds, which provide in-
come from the endowed principal in
perpetuity (Nyla Medlock Fund) or
to current use funds, which can be
spent in full as needed for resident
research, travel and other training
expenses (Occupational Medicine
Gift Fund).
Donate to Resident Education at OEM to Help Maintain Our Tradition of Excellence!
To make a donation, click on The
Nyla Medlock OEM Fund, from the
drop down box: www.hsph.harvard.edu/oemr/
about-us/make-a-donation/
Spotlight: Howard Frumkin, MD, DrPH ‘93, MPH ‘82, (OEMR ‘88)
Howard Frumkin is Professor of
Environmental and Occupational
Health Sciences, at the University
of Washington School of Public
Health. Dr. Frumkin is an internist,
environmental and occupational
medicine specialist, and epidemiolo-
gist, who has worked in academia
and public service. From 2010 to
2016 he served as Dean at the
UWash School of Public Health.
From 2005 to 2010 he held leader-
ship roles at the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention,
first as director of the National
Center for Environmental Health
and Agency for Toxic Substances
and Disease Registry (NCEH/
ATSDR), and later as Special Assis-
tant to the CDC Director for Cli-
mate Change and Health. During
his tenure NCEH/ATSDR created
programs in Climate Change and
in Healthy Community Design;
launched training programs
for college students, doctoral stu-
dents, and post-docs; expanded its
Biomonitoring and Environmental
Public Health Tracking programs;
and launched its National Conver-
sation on Public Health and Chemi-
cal Exposures. From 1990 to 2005,
he was Professor and Chair of Envi-
ronmental and Occupational Health
at Emory University's Rollins
School of Public Health and Profes-
sor of Medicine at Emory Medical
School.
Dr. Frumkin currently serves on
the Boards of the Seattle Parks
Foundation and the Bullitt Founda-
tion, and on Advisory Boards for
FutureHealth, the National Sustain-
able Communities Coalition, the
Partnership for Active Transporta-
tion, the Planetary Health Alliance,
and the Center for Design and
Health at the University of Virginia
School of Architecture. In past
years he served on the Boards of
the US Green Building Council,
Physicians for Social Responsibility
(PSR), the Children and Nature
Network (including a term as
Chair), the Pacific Northwest Dia-
betes Research Institute, the Na-
tional Environmental Education
Foundation, the American Public
Health Association (as Chair of
APHA’s Science Board), the Associ-
ation of Occupational and Environ-
mental Clinics (AOEC) (including a
term as President), and the Wash-
ington Global Health Alliance. He
chaired the Welcome Trust “Our
Planet, Our Health” funding com-
mittee. Other public and profes-
sional service included serving on
the Executive Committee of the
Regional Open Space Strategy for
Central Puget Sound, the American
Institute of Architects Design and
Health Leadership Group, the Na-
tional Toxicology Program Board of
Scientific Counselors, the National
Research Council Committee on
Sustainability Linkages in the Feder-
al Government, the Washington
Department of Ecology Toxics Re-
duction Strategy Group, and Seat-
tle's Green Ribbon Commis-
sion. As a member of EPA's Chil-
dren's Health Protection Advisory
Committee, he chaired the Smart
Growth and Climate Change work
groups. A graduate of the Institute
for Georgia Environmental Leader-
ship, he was named Environmental
Professional of the Year by the
Georgia Environmental Council in
2004. His research interests include
public health aspects of the built
environment, climate change, ener-
gy policy, and nature contact; toxic
effects of chemicals; and environ-
mental health policy. He is the au-
thor, co-author, or editor of over
200 scientific journal articles, chap-
ters, and books, including the
standard environmental health text-
book, Environmental Health: From
Global to Local.
Dr. Frumkin received his A.B. from
Brown University, his M.D. from
the University of Pennsylvania, his
M.P.H. and Dr.P.H. from Harvard,
his Internal Medicine training at the
Hospital of the University of Penn-
sylvania and Cambridge Hospital,
and his Environmental and Occupa-
tional Medicine training at Harvard.
He is Board-certified in Internal
Medicine and in Environmental and
Occupational Medicine, and is a
Fellow of the American College of
Physicians, the American College of
Occupational and Environmental
Medicine, Collegium Ramazzini and
the Royal College of Physicians of
Ireland. He loves cycling, kayaking,
and hiking. He is married to radio
journalist Joanne Silberner, and has
two children.
Page 11
Page 12
On December 2, 2016, the New
England College of Occupational and
Environmental Medicine (NECOEM)
awarded Dr. Michael Erdil with the
distinguished Harriet Hardy award
at its 2016 Annual Conference in
Newton. NECOEM presents this
award annually to an individual who
has made outstanding contributions
to the field. Michael Erdil, MD,
FACOEM, is a physician with Occu-
pational and Environmental Health
Network in Marlborough MA; and
an Assistant Professor at the Uni-
versity of Connecticut Health Cen-
ter in the Department of Internal
Medicine, Section of Occupational
Medicine. Dr. Erdil is Board Certi-
fied in Occupational and Environ-
mental Medicine, and a Fellow of the
American College of Occupational
and Environmental Medicine. Dr. Erdil has been involved with
evidence based recommendations
from several entities over the years.
Dr. Erdil served as a reviewer for
the Agency for Health Care Policy
and Research Acute Low Back Prob-
lems in Adults 1994; and the
American College of Occupational
and Environmental Medicine Oc-
cupational Medicine Practice
Guidelines 1st edition. Dr. Erdil
currently serves on the Editorial
Advisory Board for the Official
Disability Guidelines Treatment in
Workers Comp and has recently
joined UpToDate to author the
Occupational Low Back Pain topic
reviews.
Dr. Erdil has co-authored Cumu-
lative Trauma Disorders of the
Upper Extremity, and Biomechan-
ics of Manual Material Handling
and Low Back Pain for Zenz’ Oc-
cupational Medicine Mosby; Cu-
mulative Trauma Disorders: Pre-
vention, Evaluation, and Treatment
for Van Nostrand Reinhold; a chap-
ter on Medications and Return to
Work for the AMA Physician’s
Guide to Return to Work (1st ed)
and other publications.
Dr. Erdil has collaborated on a num-
ber of efforts to prevent occupa-
tional disease and musculoskeletal
disorders, and to improve musculo-
skeletal care outcomes. Dr. Erdil
served as the Advisory Board Chair-
man for the Connecticut Road In-
dustry Surveillance Project, a Na-
tional Institute of Occupational Safe-
ty and Health funded grant con-
ceived by Dr. Kathy Maurer at Yale
University to prevent lead toxicity
in road and bridge construction
workers. With funding from
ATSDR, Dr. Erdil, Dr. Maurer and
the CT Dept. of Health developed
materials to help Connecticut physi-
cians take an occupational and envi-
ronmental health history, compiled
a resource manual for primary care
physicians dealing with exposure
related disease, and developed a
computer program to help deter-
mine if patients developed environ-
mental illness due to exposure to
CT Superfund sites. Dr. Erdil collab-
orated with Dr. Martin Cherniack
from UConn DOEM to co-author
sections of the Health Effects Sec-
tion of the Preamble to the Pro-
posed OSHA Ergonomics Rule, and
testified at the Dept. of Labor hear-
ings to advocate for worker safety.
Some recent interests have included
implementing educational materials
and strategies to help patients make
better decisions regarding treatment
options for musculoskeletal disor-
ders.
Photo credit: Kathryn Costello
Dr. Michael Erdil Receives the 2016 Harriet Hardy Award
I was honored to receive the Harriett Hardy Award from the New
England College of Occupational
and Environmental Medicine this
past year. Dr. Hardy spent her distinguished career blending clinical
practice, education, research
and activism. Her autobiography
“Challenging Man Made Disease,” was influential in
my decision to pursue a career
in prevention and occupational med-
icine. I owe inspirational thanks to
Dr. Hardy, the individuals who have
received this award in the past, in-
cluding Dr. Kales, and numerous
colleagues I have had
the privilege to work with and learn
from over the years. I hope
that my presentation encouraged attendees to become more active at
a time when health care and our
profession are at a crossroads. —
Dr. Michael Erdil
Page 13
`
Dr. Elisha Atkins’ Retirement Celebration On May, 6, 2016, the Harvard Chan OEMR celebrated the illustrious career of Dr. Elisha Atkins
(OEMR ‘82), with a gathering of colleagues, friends and
family members, to honor this esteemed professor and
physician. Dr. Atkins is an Assistant Professor of Medi-
cine, Harvard Medical School and served for over 20
years as the Medical Director, Occupational Health Pro-
gram at Massachusetts General Hospital. During his
many years in occupational medicine, Dr. Atkins made
numerous outstanding contributions to our field, includ-
ing his position as Director of MGH’s Employee Health
Service, dedicated service as a member of our Residency
Advisory Committee, lecturing in the EH232 OEM
course, and serving as an excellent clinical preceptor.
This wonderful event was most generously sponsored
by Dr. Dean Hashimoto, Chief of OEM at Partners
Healthcare, who worked closely with Dr. Atkins in his
MGH roles. Tributes to Dr. Atkins were also delivered
by Drs. Kales, Pransky and Goldman.
In January 2016, Dr. Kales served as the
Course Director for the Harvard Special Ses-
sion: Introduction to Occupational Health. He
taught a graduate-level short-course, to 19
students from Japan, the Philippines, China,
Taiwan, Vietnam and Thailand, at the Teikyo
University Campus in Tokyo, Japan. The pro-
gram is organized by Professor Eiji Yano, the
founding Dean of Teikyo's School of Public
Health, and a 1984 MPH graduate of Harvard,
as well as the 2013 recipient of Harvard Chan's
Alumni Award of Merit In 2015, Dr. Christiani
taught the same course and this year, Dr. Rose
Goldman gave an environmental health version
of the special session. For Stefanos, teaching
these classes was a privilege, with a great
group of students, and the superb collabora-
tion of Prof. Yano, his colleagues and staff.
Dr. Kales Visits Teikyo University
Above: Dr. Glenn Pransky and Dr. Stefanos Kales present
Dr. Atkins with a commemorative plaque in honor of his
exceptional service.
Photo left:
Dr. Atkin’s colleagues, family
(including Dr. Atkins’ wife,
mother and daugh-
ter, pictured first
row center) and
friends at the May
6th celebration.
Photo: Bottom left, Dr. Yano; Prof. Kozue Yamaoka, Dean, Teikyo SPH; Dr. Kales;
Prof. Kunio Hara with the 2016 class of students.
Page 14
Outstanding Clinical & Academic Teaching Awards
Each year, OEMR residents elect one clinical preceptor from their clinical rotations and one faculty in-
structor from their Masters in Public Health courses, who have had an especially meaningful impact on
their training and education to receive awards of recognition. We are delighted to announce that Lee
Okurowski, MD, MPH, MBA, (OEMR ‘02) received the 2016 award of Outstanding Clinical Facul-
ty and Emily Sparer, ScD (’15), MS (‘11) received the 2016 award of Outstanding Academic Facul-
ty. On behalf of the OEMR program, we would like to thank you both for your time, dedication and
outstanding mentoring. Congratulations Lee and Emily!
The award is a huge honor
and I am very grateful for
the recognition. I learned a
ton from the students as
well, and their enthusiasm
and interest in the material
made for a wonderful class-
room experience!" —
Emily Sparer
Donating is easy—you can donate online at https://secure.post.harvard.edu/olc/pub/HAA/onlinegiving/
showGivingForm.jsp?form_id=63151 and make a note that your gift is for the HSPH OEMR Program (Nyla
Medlock Endowed Fund or the OEMR Gift Fund) or you can complete the following section and enclose it
with your payment. Please contact Ms. Rachel Link at [email protected] or (617) 432-1260 for assis-
tance.
First Name _________________________ Last Name _____________________________
Street Address_______________________ City__________________________________
State______________________________ Zip Code______________________________
Phone Number ______________________ E-mail ________________________________
Donation Amount* $ _________________ Gift Fund ____ or Nyla Medlock Endowment_____
Please mail to: (Payable to Harvard University, with memo for Nyla Medlock Fund or OEMR
Gift Fund), Ms. Rachel Link, Finance, EOME, Bldg I, 14th Floor, Room 1402, Harvard T.H.
Chan School of Public Health, 665 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115
Donate to Resident Education at OEMR
Dr. Gerardo D. Durand, MPH ‘09 Dr. Ashok N. Nimgade
Dr. Kevin Johnson Dr. Karina Descartin & Mr. Gerry Manacsa
Thank you!
This list reflects donations to the HSPH OEMR for the 2016 calendar year, based on information provided by Development as of
February 2017
Donor Recognition Thank You to our Generous Supporters!
$10,000-$14,999 Drs. Anthony and Joyce Kales
Dr. Elisha (Skip) H. Atkins Ms. Nyla Medlock
$5,000-$7,499 Drs. Samuel Forman ‘80 and Yulika E. Forman
Dr. Stefanos Kales ‘93 and Ana Kales Dr. Dean M. Hashimoto
$1,000-$2,499 Occupational & Environmental Health Network
Dr. Anthony John Vita, MPH ‘02 Cambridge Health Alliance Dr. Hsien W. Hsu, SM ‘02
Up to $500 NECOEM
Occupational Health Connections, Inc. Occupational and Environmental Health
Network Dr. Rose Goldman, MPH ‘80, SM ‘81
& Mr. Alan Drabkin Dr. Gina M. Solomon, MPH ‘94
Page 15
NECOEM Poster Session 2016
Page 16
American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine’s
AOHC 2017
Please join us at the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine’s AOHC 2017 for an
Alumni Reunion as we welcome current and former HSPH OEM residents in Denver, CO. The
dinner will take place on Monday, April 24, 2017, 8:00pm at Avelina Restaurant.
If you are an OEMR alumnus, please RSVP to Tiffany Sarkissian, [email protected].
We are looking forward to this year’s conference and reunion!
This year, Deb Barbeau (OEMR ‘16) presented on the Zika Virus, entitled, Emerging Infections, Zika Virus: Lessons Learned.
Posters included were: 1) Korre M, Porto LGG, Farioli A, Christiani D, Christophi C, Lombardi D, Kovacs R, Abbasi
S, Steigner M, Moffatt S, Smith D, Kales SN. Validation of the Effect of Body Mass Index on Left Ventricular Mass in Career
Male Firefighters. New England College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine/Mass Association of Occupational
Health Nurses (NECOEM/MaAOHN) and 2) Sotos-Prieto M, Cash S, Christophi C, Folta S, Moffatt S, Muegge C, Korre M,
Mozaffarian D, Kales SN. Feeding America’s Bravest: Mediterranean Diet-Based Intervention to change Firefighters’ Eating
Habits and Improve Cardiovascular Risk Profiles. New England College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine/Mass
Association of Occupational Health Nurses (NECOEM/MaAOHN).
In June 2016, Dr. Kales was an invited keynote speaker at the Symposium
on First Responders’ Safety and Health, in Seoul, Korea, at Seoul National
University. Dr. Kales discussed his extensive work on cardiovascular
disease and sudden cardiac death, among firefighters and police.
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ria K
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Dr. S
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Symposium on First Responders’ Safety and Health, in Seoul, Korea, at Seoul Nation-
al University (SNU). Pictured above from left: Chairperson Dr. Joo-Young Lee, SNU, Dr. Jorma Rantanen, Director Emeritus, Finnish Inst. Of Occ. Health; Dr. Rokho Kim,
Dr. Stefanos Kales along with other SNU students and faculty.
Page 17 Contact Us: Ann Backus, MS Administrator, OEMR Mailing Address: Room 1-1402 665 Huntington Avenue Boston, MA 02115 Email: abackus@ hsph.harvard.edu Phone: (617) 432-3327 Fax: (617) 432-0219 NIOSH Grant Number: T42 OH008416
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/
oemr/
Mediterranean Diet & Health
October 15-21, 2017, Halkidiki, Greece
Travel to Greece with the PBS TV
show, The Cooking Odyssey, interna-
tional experts and Harvard Faculty
for a hands-on, mouth-watering im-
mersion course on the benefits of
the Mediterranean Diet, where it
was born. With world-renowned
instructors and the Aegean Sea as
your classroom, enjoy interactive
learning combined with a once-in a
lifetime experience of legendary
Greek hospitality, healthy & deli-
cious food and wine, warmed by the
Greek autumn sun and surrounded
by the famed sights, sounds and fla-
vors of Greece, old and new.
http://mediterraneanhealth.org/